


Gloom

by Musical_Fandom



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Character Death, Grief/Mourning, Gun Violence, Hurt No Comfort, Mild Blood, Murder, Post-November 20 Interrogation (Persona 5), Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-08
Updated: 2021-01-08
Packaged: 2021-03-18 20:54:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,756
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28624428
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Musical_Fandom/pseuds/Musical_Fandom
Summary: After the events of November 20th, the Phantom Thieves are left to reflect on the aftermath.
Kudos: 23





	Gloom

Akira's mind raced with panic. There was something he was forgetting, something important. Everything was so hazy though, he just couldn't reach the answers he needed.

When Sae left, Akira had the sinking feeling that he had done something wrong. He failed in some way. Everything was ruined.

The door to the interrogation room opened. A guard entered, followed by Akechi. The second the door closed, the guard was lying on the ground in a pool of his own blood. All Akira could do was watch in horror as his friend, no, as his killer effortlessly took someone's life. When he turned to Akira, the sadistic smile he wore sent shivers down his spine.

"Case closed. This is where your justice ends." 

The cold metal of the gun was pressed against his head. He couldn't slow his racing heart. He was going to die. He failed. Everyone had been counting on him and he-

Akechi watched with satisfaction as the blood poured from his rival's head. He hit the table causing red to errupt in a beautiful mess. Akechi used the gun to prod at the body to test for a response. Nothing. He smirked as he removed the silencer and placed the weapon in the corpse's hand before stepping back to get a good look at his work. It was admittedly a terrible job at staging but that didn't matter. No one was going to check the guard for signs of a struggle or ask why the dead Phantom Thief's position didn't make sense. They were going to do as they were told and shut up about it.

On the way out of the building, Akechi couldn't stop thinking about the scene. A morbid sense of joy overtook him. There was one less threat now, one less wall in between himself and Shido. All that was left to do was eliminate the rest of the trash that stood in his way. It wouldn't be too much of an issue. After all, they were useless without their leader.

Yusuke couldn’t bring himself to pick up his brush. Everything reminded him of Akira. His sketch pad brought him back to when their leader personally helped him with his art block. The blank canvases reminded him of the many skill cards he had been commissioned to replicate. Even the bright splotches of paint that littered the floor of his dorm left him with the impression of Akira. It was painful. They had all been so confident in him. Everyone had known it was a risky plan but they had foolishly thought that Joker would be fine just like always. They should have known better. Plans were never their strong suit, Yusuke had just hoped that things had changed since Madarame. What a fool he was.

The group chat had been startlingly silent in the days following Akira’s death. It left Yusuke feeling more lonely than he ever had, yet, he couldn’t reach out. If they wanted to grieve in peace, he wouldn’t interrupt. It would be too selfish of him. If Akira were around, he would probably know what to say. He always did. Did he have anything to say in his final moments? Was he scared? Yusuke couldn’t imagine his fearless friend as anything less than confident, even in his final moments when their entire plan fell apart. He probably met his death with the same resolve that he met every problem with. The thought didn’t provide much comfort. Why couldn’t they have done more? What else could they have done?

Futaba couldn’t stop looking. It had been days but she couldn’t get rid of the sight of Akira, so scared then, blankly staring forward covered in blood. He was gone. Just like her mother, he had been murdered by Akechi. She rewound the video once again, unable to stop herself. The entire time Akira had been beaten and tortured, all Futaba could do was watch. She felt so useless. Was that all she was good for? Was she just there to watch while her friends suffered? Even in the metaverse, she was never much help. She could never contribute in a battle or step in for someone when they needed a break like the others could. All she could do was sit on the sidelines and provide sporadic support. Here, she hadn’t even been able to do that. She was stuck in the safety of her own home, her tomb, helpless to do anything while Akira risked his life for everyone. And for what? It was only a matter of time before they were targets.

The video played yet again. On another screen, Phan Site comments scrolled by endlessly. No one mourned Akira online. Jokes about how he had it coming or heartless comments calling him a coward littered the forum. It made her blood boil, Akira was not a coward. He was far more brave than anyone else. Especially Futaba. With a few strokes of her keyboard, the forum was down. She couldn’t take it anymore. She couldn’t just let some idiots desecrate her friend’s memory. It was the only thing she could do for him.

Makoto didn’t know what to do. Everyone had been counting on their plan working. They didn’t have another plan in case theirs failed because it _couldn’t_ fail. Now, they were left without a leader and with a massive target on their backs. Makoto couldn’t stop blaming herself. She was supposed to be the strategist. It was her job to make sure their plans were foolproof and she had failed. She failed her closest friend. She failed everyone. She couldn’t even bring herself to reach out to check on the others. Nothing could ease the bitter failure that followed her everywhere.

In the days following his death, Makoto went to school. She tried to pretend that nothing was wrong but it ate away at her. How could she focus when everything was falling apart? No one talked to each other at school. Ann had stopped coming after a day and Ryuji never even showed up. Makoto couldn’t say she blamed them. Ryuji especially must have been taking it as hard as anyone, especially since he knew Akira the longest. It hurt that she couldn’t do anything for her friends. It made her feel useless, just like before she had joined the Phantom Thieves.

Ryuji couldn’t calm himself down. He was scared and angry and confused and everything else someone could feel in his situation. How did Akira of all people end up dead? Why couldn’t he have been there to help him? Akira had always been there when _he_ needed it but when Akira was the one who needed help, Ryuji couldn’t do shit. What was going to happen now? 

Ryuji didn’t even bother with school after Akira’s death. There was no point. He’d probably just do something stupid and end up in trouble anyways. Instead of school, Ryuji spent his time at home. His mom had tried to ask him about it but he just couldn’t tell her. He didn’t want to risk lashing out at her when she was just trying to help. He didn’t want to be a bad son _and_ a bad friend so he stayed quiet for once.

Ann had considered staying home. It’s not like she was going to learn anything anyways, but she couldn’t stay alone. Between her empty house and the silence in the group chat, she’s sure she would have lost it. Seeing Akira’s empty seat was painful. It reminded her of their failure. Akira was gone forever.

After the first day, Ann stopped coming to school. She couldn’t keep looking at the spot where Akira should have been. She wasn’t strong like Shiho or Akira, she couldn’t stand it. Ann couldn’t even bring herself to reach out to anyone. She felt like such a horrible friend.

Morgana was left with the overwhelming feeling of failure. The one time he couldn’t be there for him. Now, he was gone. Morgana couldn’t go back to LeBlanc. Not without Akira. He was lost. What could he do? Just when he found a place to belong, it was ripped away. 

Morgana hated his cat-like body. He hated that there was nothing he could do. He considered contacting the others but they were probably better off without him. Whatever they were planning probably had no place for a failure like him. If it did, they would have looked for him already.

It was amazing how fast everything could fall apart. First, her father’s death then the death of one of her first friends. What was next? What else could Akechi take from her? Haru couldn’t focus on anything. She knew it would be better not to draw attention to herself, but that didn’t matter. She just wanted to hide away from everything. How had it all gone so wrong? Was it her fault? It seemed like things had only started going wrong when she became a Phantom Thief. Maybe it would have been better if she had just stayed quiet. Then at least she wouldn’t have had to deal with all this.

Before he died, Akira had been trying to help Haru with her company. She couldn’t stand to look at any of it anymore. Not in her state. It didn’t matter anymore. The coffee, the cafes, it all seemed pointless now. Even the roof, her safe haven for so many months, had been tainted. The plants she had once loved only reminded her of Akira. Still, she dutifully tended to them. Akira would have wanted them to live on, just like he would have wanted all of them to live on.

Akechi monitored the Phantom Thieves situation carefully. Any attempt at regrouping had to be crushed immediately. Of course, that turned out not to be a problem when they were in such a sorry state. Moping over the loss of their leader, it was honestly pathetic. Useful for his plans, but pathetic. It was actually a bit funny, they fell apart without him having to lift a finger. It only took a few days to confirm that the Phantom Thieves were no longer a threat. Sae Niijima however, that woman knew far too much for her own good. He smirked to himself as he watched her work herself to exhaustion in the office. No one would think twice about such a hardworking woman getting into an unfortunate accident. Maybe when he was done with his other targets, he could pay her shadow a visit.


End file.
